IMS 2026 Missed-Call Study: 222 Med Spa & Aesthetic-Wellness Businesses
What happened when we called 222 U.S. med-spa and aesthetic-wellness businesses? A documented observational study of live answers, missed-call texts and callbacks.
Executive finding. IMS placed 467 outbound call attempts to 222 unique businesses from July 27–29, 2026. Of those businesses, 137 (61.7%) produced no documented live human answer. Twenty of the no-answer businesses generated a missed-call SMS response, nine clearly automated; among the 20, one clean subsequent callback was observed.
What we did
A trained IMS representative called U.S. med-spa and aesthetic-wellness businesses during business hours, July 27–29, 2026. Multiple attempts to the same business were consolidated into one business-level record. Calls were intended to be placed without voicemail. Inbound texts, return calls and voicemails were tracked through August 5, 2026. The audit reconstructed the results from read-only Close CRM activity records and notes. No call audio was recorded.
What we found
Live answer classification
Missed-call response funnel
| Stage | Businesses | Interpretation |
|---|---|---|
| Attempted | 222 | 467 outbound attempts |
| No documented human answer | 137 | 61.7% of sample |
| Missed-call SMS observed | 20 | 14.6% of no-answer businesses |
| Clean subsequent callback | 1 | 1 of 20 SMS businesses |
What the 20 texts contained
Eight invited the caller to text, five were simple acknowledgements, three were generic automated replies, one included an online booking link, and three were unclear. Nine of the 20 were clearly automated based on timing or content evidence. The one clean callback occurred approximately 20 hours after the missed call.
Why “answered” can be misleading
The phone system logged 422 of 467 outbound attempts as technically “answered.” That does not mean a person picked up: voicemail and auto-attendants can also register as answered. At the business level, only 81 had a documented live conversation.
Why this matters
These results illustrate a potential gap between generating interest and engaging a prospective customer. The study did not measure purchase intent, lost sales, or the financial value of a missed call. For providers helping local businesses, it highlights why lead-response workflows deserve investigation before recommending additional advertising, automation or software.
Practical question: Before investing in more leads, what happens when a customer calls and nobody answers?
Field report vs. CRM reconstruction
The original field report and the audited CRM reconstruction differ. We preserve both to show how the research was reconciled. The audited Dataset v1.0 figures are the publication figures.
| Measurement | Original field report | Dataset v1.0 |
|---|---|---|
| Businesses called | Approximately 220 | 222 |
| Human answers | 48 | 81 |
| Missed-call SMS responses | 25 | 20 |
| Subsequent callbacks | 2 of 25 | 1 clean of 20 (2 confounded) |
Five field-reported SMS responses could not be located in the CRM. Four businesses remained indeterminate for live-answer classification. Neither group was forced into a favorable category.
Limitations
This is an observational sample, not a representative national benchmark or controlled experiment. Calls occurred over three business days. Answer classifications relied on CRM notes and dispositions, not recordings. The four indeterminate businesses were retained. The single clean callback is one observation, not evidence of a typical callback time or a universal text-back conversion rate. The study cannot establish causation or measure sales outcomes.
Review definitions, exclusions and full methodology →
Frequently asked questions
How many businesses answered?
81 of 222 (36.5%) had a documented live conversation; 137 (61.7%) had no documented human answer and 4 were indeterminate.
Did missed-call text-back produce callbacks?
Twenty no-answer businesses generated an observed SMS response. One clean subsequent callback was observed among those 20. This does not establish general text-back effectiveness.
How quickly did the business call back?
In the single clean case, the callback arrived about 20 hours after the missed call. No median callback time can be calculated.
Can this study be cited?
Yes. Include the sample, observational design, dates, Dataset v1.0 and a link to this permanent research page.
How to cite this research
Integrated Marketing Solutions (IMS). (2026). IMS 2026 Missed-Call Study: What Happened When We Called 222 Med Spa & Aesthetic-Wellness Businesses. Dataset v1.0. Calls July 27–29, 2026; responses tracked through August 5, 2026. https://partners.imsol.io/research/missed-call-study-2026/
Research version 1.0 was frozen August 21, 2026. Any revision should be issued as a new version with a changelog; the original is not silently changed.
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